Research in Motion has announced BlackBerry Enterprise Server support for iOS — namely BES and RIM’s newly acquired ubitexx technology, will soon be able to provide management and security features for iPhone and iPad.
“The multi-platform BlackBerry Enterprise Solution is designed to address a growing market and respond to requests from enterprise customers who want a secure multi-platform device management solution from a company that already delivers the gold standard for enterprise mobility,” said Peter Devenyi, Vice President, Communications Platform Group at Research In Motion. “We recognize the opportunity to continue leading in the enterprise market by providing customers with a common platform to help simplify the management of a variety of mobile devices.”
iOS — and Android for that matter — won’t get all the fancy features BlackBerrys on BES enjoy, including the new BlackBerry Balance feature which silos work from personal content, but they’ll get enough to make it very interesting for IT departments.
Microsoft once faced the choice of keeping ActiveSync a competitive advantage for Windows Mobile, hurting their platform but helping their devices, or licensing ActiveSync and gaining infrastructure share at the expense of device share. They chose the latter and now ActiveSync is a key part of iOS, Mac OS X, GoogleSync, and many Android devices. RIM had chosen to keep their technology for themselves… up until now and it begs the question — if they’re going to let BES go cross-platform, could BBM follow?
And what if any increased competition will Apple’s new “iCloud” services offer in the enterprise space?
Full BlackBerry World PR after the break! Anyone counting the days until you can hook your iPhone or iPad into BES?
[CrackBerry]
RIM Announces Multi-Platform BlackBerry Enterprise Solution for Smartphones and Tablets
Device Management Solution to Provide Security, Management, and Control of BlackBerry Devices, Plus Secure Management for Other Mobile Devices
Waterloo, ON – Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq: RIMM, TSX: RIM) is announcing today plans for a multi-platform BlackBerry Enterprise Solution for managing and securing mobile devices for enterprises and government organizations. The solution will make available the market-leading management, security and controls of BlackBerry® Enterprise Server and BlackBerry® Enterprise Server Express for BlackBerry® devices plus, through RIM’s pending acquisition of ubitexx (creator of the ubi-Suite device management solution), the solution is expected to incorporate secure device management for Android and iOS based devices and tablets, all managed from a single web-based console.
“The multi-platform BlackBerry Enterprise Solution is designed to address a growing market and respond to requests from enterprise customers who want a secure multi-platform device management solution from a company that already delivers the gold standard for enterprise mobility,” said Peter Devenyi, Vice President, Communications Platform Group at Research In Motion. “We recognize the opportunity to continue leading in the enterprise market by providing customers with a common platform to help simplify the management of a variety of mobile devices.”
The single web-based console is being designed to provide IT administrators with a simple and efficient way to distribute software and manage policies, inventory, security and services for BlackBerry devices, as well as other mobile devices. IT administrators will be able to manage devices over-the-air, including activating devices, distributing software and applications, locking or wiping devices, enforcing and resetting device passwords, setting IT policies, and managing optional mobile applications for end users. Certain features are expected to remain exclusive to BlackBerry devices because such capabilities are built into the design of a device’s operating system. Examples include RIM’s industry-leading push technology, network and data usage efficiency, behind-the-firewall access to enterprise applications and systems, and many of the over 550 IT policies available through BlackBerry Enterprise Server. The recently-released BlackBerry® BalanceTM technology (see separate press release issued today), which supports the use of a single smartphone for both work and personal purposes without compromising the
security of corporate content or the privacy of personal content, will also remain exclusive to BlackBerry devices.
Overall, as is largely understood in the enterprise market today, organizations can expect a range of security, manageability and controls depending on different device platform capabilities, with some devices further limited by the design of their operating system.
The multi-platform BlackBerry Enterprise Solution will be comprised of optional architectural components based on the configuration of an organization’s mobile deployment and their operational needs. Optional components will include BlackBerry Enterprise Server and BlackBerry Enterprise Server Express for BlackBerry devices, and a separate, secure device management server for Android and iOS devices (based on the foundation of ubi-Suite from ubitexx). It will be possible to deploy multiple components in a virtualized environment on a single server.
Note: Registration for a product preview of the ubitexx solution is open today at www.ubitexx.com/preview.
The multi-platform BlackBerry Enterprise Solution is planned for general availability later this year.
RIM announces BlackBerry Enterprise Server… for iPhone and iPad! is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.
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